Ecological Factors Linked to Social Exclusion Among Older Adults in Türkiye

A cross-sectional study of 400 people aged 65 and over in Türkiye found that social exclusion was associated with conditions at multiple levels of the ecological framework, spanning individual circumstances, community settings, local institutions, and broader social conditions. Researchers collected interview data and used the Social Exclusion Scale for Older Adults, then applied multiple linear regression to examine the relationships between ecological characteristics and participants’ social exclusion scores. The findings show that later-life exclusion was connected to several intertwined factors rather than to a single personal disadvantage.

At the micro level, the clearest reported associations involved education, income, health, physical activity, and housing. Higher education and income, better self-reported health, greater physical activity, and more suitable housing were each associated with lower levels of social exclusion among the participants. These relationships emerged from the statistical analysis and do not demonstrate that changing any one of these factors would directly reduce exclusion.

The cross-sectional design cannot establish temporal order or causality, so the results are best understood as characteristics associated with lower scores in this sample of 400 older adults. The analysis also examined meso-level characteristics within the immediate community, including consumption patterns, digital connectivity, and age-friendly environments. These features were identified as correlates of social exclusion, although the reported findings did not specify a direction for their associations with exclusion scores.

The same distinction applies to several exo-level factors: satisfaction with local services, awareness of socioeconomic rights, utilization of social assistance, and active participation in community life were included among the correlates, but the abstract does not state which direction each association took. Their presence in the model nevertheless indicates that social exclusion scores varied in relation to factors extending beyond an individual’s personal characteristics. At the macro level, the absence of ageism, equitable resource access, and fewer employment barriers were associated with lower levels of exclusion.

By organizing variables across the micro, meso, exo, and macro levels, the study examined social exclusion as a multidimensional outcome embedded in interconnected personal, community, institutional, and societal conditions. The approach avoids treating age, income, health, or housing in isolation and instead considers how exclusion can be statistically related to conditions at several scales. Its scope also limits conclusions about how widely the observed associations apply beyond the surveyed population.

The authors’ overall implication is that addressing exclusion in later life may require multilevel interventions and policies directed at multiple ecological systems, rather than action confined to one setting or factor.

Subject of Research: Ecological correlates of social exclusion among adults aged 65 and over in Türkiye

Article Title: Social Exclusion Among Older Adults in Türkiye: A Cross-Sectional Assessment from an Ecological Social Work Perspective

Article References: Karakaya, C., & Çağlar, T. (2026). Social Exclusion Among Older Adults in Türkiye: A Cross-Sectional Assessment from an Ecological Social Work Perspective. Ageing International, 51(4), Article 44. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12126-026-09688-2

Image Credits: AI Generated

DOI: 10.1007/s12126-026-09688-2

Keywords: social exclusion, older adults, Türkiye, cross-sectional study, ecological systems, ageism, social assistance, digital connectivity, age-friendly environments, housing, Social, Exclusion